Chapter Text
Logan sighed as he hoisted his messenger bag over his shoulder. The bag was hefty, he had to rotate which shoulder he used each day to carry it. It had textbook after textbook from his other classes and finally, he would be taking this class. For the first year of college, he took all of the mandatory classes. He passed them all with flying colors, obviously, but now, a year later, he was taking a class he did not want to take. Not wanting to learn was rare for him, and he did have some desire to know what the class taught, but it was simply something he did not want to care about.
He saw the professor's name hung up on the door to the large room with rows upon rows of chairs. Mrs. Lee. He had heard she was nice and compassionate but he just hoped that she could teach well. This class, the only one he was not interested in whilst getting his biology degree, was the classes that were on the secondary genders. Logan did not really care about the gender hierarchy. He was a beta, after all; he was not required to care. Still, he sighed as he walked in. He took a seat near the front as he was intent on learning and getting good grades even if he did not want to be there. The class itself was just the biology of the secondary genders and their pheromones. After introductions, Mrs. Lee quickly started to speak.
"As you all may know, this class is going to be about the biology of our secondary genders. I would like to assume that all of us at least know some base-level information when it comes to our secondary genders, right?"
Mrs. Lee asked as she strode around the front of the room. She had ginger hair that was slightly frizzy on her head and a blue dress. She was on the smaller side but not terribly so. She smiled as she walked over to Logan, though still speaking to the class.
"As it is a fact of life, I would like some people to introduce themselves with their name and their secondary gender. How about you first, young man?"
Mrs. Lee then projected, looking down at Logan expectantly. On the first day, he had to introduce himself? Is this kindergarten? Still, he did so anyway.
"My name is Logan and I am a beta."
Logan simply said, clear and to the point. Mrs. Lee just smiled at him and nodded her head at his words. She then walked over to a girl. She was small with blonde hair and brown eyes. She looked slightly meek as she sat there next to a much larger man.
"Uhm… my name is Willow and I'm an omega."
The girl said after a moment. The guy next to her was staring off into the air, even when Mrs. Lee looked at him expectantly. Logan tried to find what the man was staring at but he couldn't find anything of interest. It took an elbow in the side from Willow to bring the guy back to his mind.
"Oh—Uh, I'm Ethan and I'm Willow's boyfriend."
The man introduced. Willow simply put her head in her hands in what looked like embarrassment, her face red. Ethan was utterly clueless. Mrs. Lee just chuckled.
"I also asked for your secondary gender, Ethan. Are you an alpha, a beta, or an omega?"
Mrs. Lee then prodded, which made the guys Ethan was sitting near laugh loudly. Ethan let out a huff of annoyance and he just pulled Willow closer to himself.
"I'm an alpha, obviously. I'm dating an omega."
Ethan said with a smart tone. Mrs. Lee just hummed before walking back to the front of the class. He typed on her computer for a moment before there was a projection on the large whiteboard. Three words; alpha, beta, and omega. She then strode to the front of the class once more.
"Now, the reason for that exercise was so that way I could have an example of the three secondary genders; alpha, beta, and omega. Let's take a look at the characteristics that each individual showed us, okay?"
Mrs. Lee said as she grabbed a blue, red, and purple dry-erase marker from her desk and slipped them in her pocket. First, she used purple and underlined the word, 'beta'.
"Logan is an example of a beta. Let's analyze his response, shall we? He responded professionally and without much fuss. This is a good example of the behavior of a beta. They are mediators in packs and they are the embodiment of being in the middle. Betas are the medians in our society."
Mrs. Lee said, writing words on the whiteboard like 'mediator' and 'middle'. Mrs. Lee then moved on to the word 'omega' and used the blue marker.
"Willow showed a good example of an omega. She is around her mate and thus she is more meek than she may be around betas or other omegas. Omegas are known to be submissive and are the 'caregivers' of our society."
Mrs. Lee then cited, writing words like 'caregiver' and 'maternal' in the omega category. Then, she took out the red marker and went over to the word 'alpha'.
"Now, Ethan's introduction gives us the most insight. Alphas are known for being protective which is what he did. Willow got embarrassed that her mate was zoning out in front of me, the teacher. That sent off distress pheromones,"
Mrs. Lee deduced as she wrote the word, 'pheromones' over the alpha and omega lists.
"And those distress pheromones made Ethan pull her close to himself and become protective. This is the natural instinct of an alpha, to protect those around them. Alphas are known for being the head of our society and tend to be taller and bigger than the other secondary genders."
Mrs. Lee then said. Willow and Ethan both were thoroughly embarrassed now that this information was being spoken out to the class. Mrs. Lee just smiled and stepped to the side to write the word, 'pheromones' in big letters.
"Now, pheromones are the biggest thing to alphas and omegas. The thing about betas is that they don't have the same scent receptors that alphas and omegas do. They can't smell distress or pinpoint secondary gender by scent which alphas and omegas can easily do. This is because betas don't have pheromone receptors, like I said. I mentioned distress pheromones, and those tend to be common. Pheromones can either be released willingly or unwillingly, though most are unwilling. Willow naturally released distress pheromones without thinking about it. Ethan responded to this by releasing his scent to Willow, most likely to calm her down as well as pulling her close."
Mrs. Lee spoke knowledgeably, writing down the things she said but in shorter words under the 'pheromones' box. Mrs. Lee then gave an almost guilty smile as she looked at the class again.
"And that, my lovely students, will conclude this portion of class. I usually don't give out homework but I am today, so read 'Chapter Two: Pheromones and Natural Correlations to Instinct' in the textbooks up front. If you do not get finished in class, then it becomes homework."
Mrs. Lee announced to the class before then walking back to her desk and sitting down. She didn't take the projection down from the whiteboard and started to type on her computer at her desk.
Logan saw her teaching skills and was a little surprised, but he did like the way she taught the class. It was easily digestible and easily understood. The examples using the students were amusing as well but good examples nonetheless. Logan could get used to this class.
Another important detail about that day was that it was the day he moved into his new apartment. The most he had done was contact the person offering the spare room from social media. He needed it. It was close to the college and close to the library he worked at outside of classes as well. It matched up perfectly and while he had run through the scenarios of horrible roommates, he knew that no matter how much of a slob the three might be, it worked out too well for Logan to care that much. So, that evening, he loaded his belongings from his past apartment and into his car in his suitcase as well as a duffel bag and boxes for his books. He had a lot of things in his old room but the one he planned to move into should be the same size so he assured himself it would be fine. He loaded everything into his slightly beat-up car and drove to the address he was given. They lived on the third floor, apartment number thirty-four. He got his suitcase and his duffel bag and trudged up the stairs. He was out of breath once he got to the third floor but he let himself recover before going to the apartment. He readjusted his tie before putting his knuckles to the cool metal of the door and giving a good knock. Not too loud, not too soft. Good. That's what he needed.
He tried to convince himself he wasn't a tad bit nervous but he knew deep down that he was questioning. It was mostly about just who these people were and if they would accept him. After all, it is human nature to feel a need to be accepted into a group. He pushed those icky thoughts away, though. He didn't move into an apartment with three roommates because he needed the social interaction, he moved in because it was convenient. Nothing more.
The boy who answered looked like his profile picture, though it was much more detailed seeing the young man up close. The man was tan-skinned with even darker freckles smattering his face and trailing down his neck lightly. He had dark brown hair that was more than curly. It swirled and twisted in on itself on the man's head until Logan couldn't tell where one curl ended and another began. He had hazel eyes underneath wire-rimmed glasses and his eyes transmitted his bright smile perfectly. This boy was colored like the earth. Logan immediately slapped himself at that thought. He was starved of human interaction, wasn't he?
The man, who was named Patton Dame, bounced on his heels excitedly.
"Our new roommate is here!"
Patton called in a loud, sing-song voice to the inside of the apartment. Logan didn't see anybody but a tall, muscular man came into view. He was tall with slight muscles on his arms, he had a good few inches on Logan. He had bright green eyes, like shining emeralds. His hair was messy and was stuck up every which way along with many strips of it dyed a bright red. The man raised an eyebrow at Patton.
"Uhm, excuse me, mi amor, I do not recall consenting to a roommate?"
The tall man asked incredulously, crossing his arms which just made him look bigger. Patton didn't react to this at all, from what Logan could see. He almost looked embarrassed.
"Well, I told Virge to tell you! I swear he did, I remember it!"
Patton then said, a small smile still on his face though he refuted the tall man easily.
"I remember it, too."
A more monotone voice called from down the hallway which Logan assumed to lead to the bedrooms. The owner was a few inches shorter than the tall man but was much different. He was skinny and pale, similar to Logan. He had a hooked nose and eye bags that were accentuated by some sort of makeup akin to eyeshadow. His eyes, though, were the kick in the pants (was Logan using that right?). The pale man's eyes were gray, they reminded him of the color of the clouds right before a horrific storm. Right before a flood. He could almost smell rain when he looked at the man but he dragged his eyes away. The pale man seemed to have faded purple dye on his head though it was mostly covered by the hood of a jacket with interesting patchwork.
Logan decided, at that moment, that he was going to give them names. The tall man was now Prince in his mind, he looked like a fairytale prince (or akin to the ones that Logan had seen) with his chiseled jaw and exaggerated movements. The pale man was now Storm, his eyes alone earning him the nickname. Storm's voice quickly took Logan out of his stupor.
"I remember, I told you at breakfast a few days ago."
Storm said with a raised eyebrow. Prince gave a huff before swiftly refuting the claim.
"You should know, Panic at the Everywhere, that I am never mentally present in the mornings."
Prince fought back. Storm just rolled his eyes with a huff before gaining a mischievous glint in them, like a trickster about to pull their latest trick.
"I also told you about it every day when you got off of work."
Storm then said back. Prince just rolled his eyes back before speaking.
"You should also know that I'm never mentally present when I am freshly home from a long day's work."
Storm then smiled again and cocked an eyebrow once more.
"So… not mentally present at all? I'm surprised you're still with us right now. Is Ro-Ro here with us?"
Storm then said, using a baby voice in the last sentence that Prince gave an offended gasp. Patton loudly cleared his throat before gesturing back to Logan. Prince and Storm both widened their eyes before muttering apologies. Patton then smiled again and turned back towards Logan.
"So, is that all you came with?"
Patton inquired with a sweet smile on his face. Logan blinked before he shook his head quickly.
"No, I have more boxes in my car. I simply need to drop these things off in my new room before heading down to get them."
Logan replied evenly. Storm and Prince both eyed him as if looking him over for anything out of place. The moment he spoke, though, it turned to slight surprise from both of them. Logan immediately concluded that it was his speech. He spoke 'too evenly' as some had told him in nicer or ruder words. Patton, however, did not react at all.
"That sounds like a lot of work! How about Virgil and Roman get your things from your car so it's less work?"
Patton then offered, gesturing to Prince and Storm. Or… Roman and Virgil. Logan guessed that Prince was Roman due to the nickname of 'Ro-Ro' that Storm had used which meant that Storm was Virgil. Interesting names, but they fit quite well. Virgil and Roman grumbled a bit but complied with Patton as they squeezed out of the door while the smaller man led him to his new room. It was as described, about as large as his room at his old apartment with light-blue walls and a single twin mattress in the corner. Logan nodded to himself before dropping the suitcase next to the bed as well as his duffel bag. He then went back downstairs to his car once more. Virgil and Roman were already down there. Roman had a large box, the one with Logan's bedding in it. Virgil, on the other hand, was struggling with carrying the box of Logan's hardcover books and textbooks.
"What do you have in here? Fifteen blocks of concrete?!"
Virgil exclaimed with a grunt as he tried to hold up the box. Roman blinked before just chuckling.
"Switch? This one is light."
Roman then offered, though there was a clear hint of teasing in his voice. Virgil immediately seemed to clock (was that the correct usage?) Roman's dig at him and he immediately scowled before shaking his head with a grunt. Logan closed his car door with his hip and sat the heavy box on top of his car while he locked it before picking it up again. Roman held the door for them both, though he eyed Logan steadily the entire time that Logan walked up the stairs in front of him. Or maybe Logan was just paranoid, that was probably it.
They had to stop at every floor so Virgil could drop the box momentarily and catch his breath. Roman, once more, offered to switch but Virgil vehemently declined. After a good while, they finally made it up to the apartment and sat the boxes down in Logan's new room. Virgil was practically heaving from the effort and Roman just chuckled as he slapped Virgil on the back.
"Are you okay, emo?"
Roman asked with a smirk. Virgil coughed but nodded his head in protest to Roman's implications. Logan just blinked at the pair before bowing his head slightly.
"Thank you two."
Logan said before raising his head again. Virgil was too busy catching his breath but Roman eyed Logan once more. He just nodded his head for a moment before leaving the room and dragging Virgil with him, the pale man grunting.
Well, his roommates sure are characters, huh?